Observation: Turnagain

Location: Eddies lower slopes

Date:
Observer:
Route & General Observations

Skinned through the woods and up to the bench. The skin track was in (thanks to those skiing in front of us!) but it was pretty nasty in the woods with lots of chunkiness and awkward tree well crossings; skinning improved substantially once we got to the meadow and began actually climbing. In open areas, there was a sun crust; it was easily breakable everywhere but stronger lower down, and on lower-angle slopes. We saw some rollerball tracks in the trees above the low meadow (1500′ ish.) There were big cornices on the ridge, but we didn’t see much wind effect in the area we skied and found no wind slabs. Winds were building as we took our last lap around 2pm so that might have changed.
We observed a crown on Shark Fin on a south-facing, steepish aspect; uphill from the crown were numerous point releases. Could also see some glide cracks on Wolverine.

We skied the same general aspect as the normal uptrack, but south. It was an absolute delight; around the top of the meadow the sun crust became sturdy enough to feel with skis.

Red Flags
Red flags are simple visual clues that are a sign of potential avalanche danger. Please record any sign of red flags below.
Obvious signs of instability
Recent Avalanches?Yes
Collapsing (Whumphing)?No
Cracking (Shooting cracks)?No
Observer Comments

Observed a semi-recent crown on the south side of Sharkfin. Forgot to check elevation, and couldn't see how far it ran into the creek from where we were.

Weather & Snow Characteristics
Please provide details to help us determine the weather and snowpack during the time this observation took place.
Weather

27 at the car around 10:30 when we started. Felt pretty warm all the way up (tank top skinning season!), and the sun was out until about 11:30 when clouds rolled in and the light flattened. Winds were calm down low but as we came up onto the bench they increased substantially and built throughout the day; they had reached "unpleasant" by about 2 pm.

Snow surface

Gross icy re-frozen garbage in the cross-country section. In open areas, there was an easily breakable sun crust. Sun crust was stronger in lower altitudes and on lower angled slopes. It vanished around treeline.

Photos & Video
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